History of Dharmashastra (Ancient and Mediaeval Religious and Civil Law in India) v6.c82.774

v6.c82.774

1083a Many ancient authors in almost all countries believed that there were different ages with differing levels of virtue and that they themselves lived in the worst age. Vide Hesiod's 'Works and days' pp. 11-17 (Loeb Classical Library) where Hesiod's own age was said to be the worst of five ages. The Babylonians made out 2160000 years for the duration of the world and imagined there were three ages, viz golden, silver and copper. Vide pp. 33-34 of Maclean's 'Babylonian astrology in relation to the Old Testament' Sarton also thinks that the Sumerians originated a golden age of man and speak of huge numbers of years, viz 12,960,000 (pp 69 and 118 of 'a History of Science') Berossus gave a list of ten ante-deluvian kings reigning in all for 432000 years (see Cambridge Ancient History, 1923, vol. I page 150) Vide Heath's 'Greek astronomy' (Introduction, p. XIV) re Egyptians' claim for possessing records of observations of stars for 630,000 years and a similar claim of Babylonians for 1,444,000 years.